Some have raised doubts about our TPS reports that feature a silk dress. We think the concerns come from the fact that some cheaper silks can be almost sheer — they can show VPLs; they show sweat like nobody’s business; they wrinkle easily; there are static electricity problems if you’re wearing hose. (To which we say: avoid the cheapest silk — avoid buying clothes at stores that target teenagers and others who like disposable fashion (H&M, Forever 21, etc, etc).) Even then, a lot of these problems can be solved with a slip and properly-fitting undergarments. Picture at left: silks, originally uploaded to Flickr by larry&flo.

This has come up a fewtimes with regard to the TPS reports, and one of our readers suggested we take a poll on it — which we enthusiastically agree with. Are all sheer fabrics bad for the office, such as chiffon, slightly sheer silk and jersey, and so forth?

For our $.02: A black sheer fabric is always going to be veering into boudoir territory. (We will admit, though, that we have a sheer black blouse that we wear underneath sweaters and sweater-vests.) However, women’s blouses have traditionally been in fabrics like silk, crepe, and even chiffon, all of which tend to be slightly sheer — it’s one of the reasons women in the older days had to wear slips and camisoles as a matter of course. (And: We have just spent far too long searching Google Images for one of the many examples we know we’ve seen of anyone from The Thin Man through Tootsie through Working Girl wearing sheer blouses, all to no avail. Grrrrr.) Our point, though: as long as your undergarments are covered tastefully by a camisole, a slightly sheer blouse or sweater peeking out beneath a jacket is not unprofessional. (Although we would say that full-on sheer, like Salma Hayek’s wearing, is unprofessional. We don’t even think a more demure camisole would have saved that one.)

Our readers are thinking along similar lines, because a second reader wrote in to wonder if there is a limit on how high a shoe can be before it’s unacceptable for work.

I recently bought some shoes, including these (pictured) (3″ black patent with tweed edging–for $30, I figured why not). When I tried them on, my husband remarked that they were “awfully tall,” and after initially thinking they would be a nice edition to my shoe collection, I began to wonder if they were not appropriate. So I guess my question is: is there a heel height cutoff, past which one should not go? I’m of average height (5’6″), and dress pretty conservatively at work (suits, pearls, the whole thing). I was planning on wearing these heels with pantsuits primarily to minimize the shiny tall heels aspect, but my husband’s comment has me wondering if they are too much for even the plainest black suit. Is there consensus on this? Does it matter on other factors (such as how tall you are to begin with)?

Above: Naturalizer Marleigh Shoe, now on sale for $30 at Naturalizer.com. [Read more…]

Obviously, miniskirts are not office-wear. However, about a week ago, we asked when — and if — miniskirts become inappropriate even on the weekends if you’re a serious, professional woman. As always, the poll is still open, but the initial results are in:

40% said the miniskirt question came down to a woman’s legs: if she has the gams, go for the miniskirt; if not, avoid

28% said that anyone in their mid-30s or beyond should only consider wearing a miniskirt with dark tights, leggings, or pants

18% said anyone in their 30s or older was pushing it

7% said it was inappropriate as soon as college was done

only 4% said that a woman could wear whatever she wanted on the weekends, regardless of age

In comments, readers weighed in on the issue. CityGirl suggested — and others agreed — that one should remember that you may run into a professional colleague over the weekend and, while not wearing business casual 24/7, you should dress appropriately. MJ noted that miniskirts look less trashy with flats or wedges, and that as long as one knows how to “keep everything ‘important’ covered,” there was no reason why a woman couldn’t wear them out and about. K thought that it was asking for people to judge you poorly if you wore a miniskirt while lugging kids around.

Readers were undecided as to what constituted a “mini” skirt, but most agreed it’s a skirt that hits mid-thigh. Some said it was anything shorter than one credit-card above the knee; others said it was anything they had to be careful in, explaining: “if you have to make sure to smooth the skirt behind you when you sit down or otherwise actively monitor what’s going on, it’s short.” Interestingly, people agreed that there are skirts that are too short for the office, yet are not miniskirts. (Let’s brainstorm a name for these too-short-yet-not-minis skirts in comments! It seems weird to us that we have distinct names for pants that hit at a different points on a woman’s leg — floodies, capris, bermudas, et cetera — but just the word “skirt” with adjectives. Maybe something like brunchers (a skirt one wears to brunch) or … uh, we’ll keep thinking.)